A conventional shielded surface mount electrical connector includes a dielectric (plastic) housing having a plurality of terminal-receiving cavities or passages, with a plurality of terminals received in the passages. A metal shield surrounds a substantial portion of the housing to protect at least the mating portions of the terminals from RF and EMI interference as well as protecting the surroundings from interference radiating from the connector, itself. The housing is mounted to the surface of a printed circuit board, and the terminals have tail portions for surface mounting to circuit pads on the board. In some applications, the housing has no mounting feet or boardlocks extending into holes in the printed circuit board to secure it to the board.
Prior art shielded input/output (I/O) connectors typically have had problems in being relatively unbalanced because the plastic housing often has a forwardly extending mating portion in which contact portions of the terminals are positioned. For instance, one type of forwardly extending projection is generally D-shaped. This D-shaped projection is surrounded by the metal shield which causes the center or gravity of the connector to be forward and results in the connector being somewhat unbalanced or unstable. When the connectors are used in through-hole applications, boardlocks typically extend from the housing through and into holes in the printed circuit board. In these through-hole applications, the problem of the connector being "front-heavy" is not a significant factor because the boardlocks hold the connector in place. However, in surface mount applications as described above, it is desirable to eliminate holes in the printed circuit board and avoid use of boardlocks. In these surface mount applications, the front-heavy connector causes problems since it may tip forwardly after placement onto the printed circuit board but before permanent soldering thereto. Consequently, efforts must be made to hold the connector in proper surface-mounted position on the board during soldering or else use boardlocks.
The present invention is directed to solving the above problems and providing an electrical connector which is more balanced and stable than connectors heretofore available to maintain the connector in a balanced or stable surface mount position on a circuit board prior to and during permanent processing of the connector onto the board.